Chapter 364: Strange "Bourbon"

(Double Chap)

When Haibara Ai said she was leaving, the three children immediately perked up their ears.

In perfect sync, they turned away from Conan and fixed their eyes on Haibara, clearly ready to reach out and stop her from leaving—just like they had done to Conan.

…But Haibara was not Conan.

She was mysterious, aloof, and had that icy calmness that made the children admire her but also keep a cautious distance. The kind of vibe that made you want to give her flowers… from across the street.

In the end, the three mischievous little hands gave up the plan and quietly returned to their original mission: pinning down Conan, who'd been trying to sneak out along with Haibara in the chaos.

—

Outside, Jiangxia was still waiting.

But to his mild surprise, only one familiar figure emerged from the school gate.

Haibara Ai spotted him quickly. She adjusted the baseball cap on her head, crossed the street, and jogged over.

Jiangxia gave her a nod, then glanced behind her.

"Why are you the only one who came out?"

Haibara hesitated half a second, caught between loyalty to the mischievous trio and the older boy in front of her.

"They didn't want to go to the movies… so they swapped cleaning duty to today. Maybe you should just head home?"

She wasn't too worried—Jiangxia probably wouldn't hold a grudge against a bunch of bear children. But leaving him waiting out here felt a bit inconsiderate.

She looked up to check his expression.

As expected, Jiangxia wasn't angry at all. He just paused slightly and said in a calm tone, "I understand. You go on ahead."

…You understand, but you're still not leaving?

Haibara tilted her head, mildly discontent, but seeing Jiangxia still leaning casually on his motorcycle with no intention of heading home, she didn't push it. She nodded, adjusted her bag, and walked off.

Jiangxia pulled out his phone and started checking emails and messages.

He'd said he was free today, and that wasn't a lie. He was truly free today. Not like any murders would crop up somewhere else. And if one did, it would be here. After all, wherever the Detective Boys were, screams and corpses weren't far behind.

Might as well wait.

—

Conan, unfortunately, had not escaped.

After being subjected to a high-pressure round of pleading, guilt-tripping, and bear child logic, he was nominated as the unlucky one to call Jiangxia.

With a resigned sigh, Conan pulled out his almost-dead phone and dialed the number. "Hello? Uh… we got in trouble during the day, so now we've got extra cleaning duty. Let's skip the movie?"

He even patched up the excuse a bit. After all, if they really had cleaning duty today, they should've used that as an excuse this morning. Saying it now could make things look fishy. No, the key to lying well was consistency. A fake accident was always the safest bet.

Because a real detective knows: even lies should be logically sound.

"It's fine," came Jiangxia's mellow voice on the other end. "I'll wait for you."

The three kids eavesdropping on Conan's phone call silently fell into despair.

Conan tried coaxing him a few more times, but it was no use. In the end, he hung up and turned to his squad—now dejectedly squatting in a corner, drawing sad circles on the ground and "planting mushrooms."

"…How about we just go?" Conan offered. "It's only a movie. Don't make noise during it, go straight home afterward, and we'll be fine."

Mitsuhiko glanced at Genta, unconvinced. He believed he could stay quiet during a movie—but Genta? Not so much.

And Jiangxia always seemed to judge them as a single entity.

Mitsuhiko sighed, stroked his chin, eyes darting, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "Then let's wait on campus after cleaning! If we hide until all the other kids go home, Brother Jiangxia won't be able to take us to the movie anymore!"

"Right!" Ayumi and Genta clapped their hands, enlightened.

Conan: "…"

Sure, you do you.

He pocketed his phone, grabbed the cleaning tools, and headed for the supply room.

—

As he passed a spot near the window, he casually glanced outside—and spotted the familiar figure across the street, still waiting at the gate.

Conan's mood became… complicated.

Back when he didn't know Jiangxia well, the first time he heard he was hanging out with delinquents, his mind had instantly gone full rogue: baseball bats, ambushes, someone accidentally dying, crime scenes faked to stump Detective Kudo…

He had imagined Jiangxia as a dark figure standing menacingly at the school gate of his own middle school—not loitering patiently outside an elementary school with a soft look in his eyes.

Conan paused.

Why was Jiangxia so eager to spend time with a bunch of mischievous kids?

Was it to repay Professor Agasa?

Or did their youthful chaos somehow bring him peace?

Conan shook his head, lost in thought as he returned to the utility room with a mop and bucket in hand.

Whatever the case, one thing was clear: Jiangxia had the patience of a saint, and the determination of a man waiting to catch a fish… in a sandbox.

When he returned to the classroom, Conan shot a subtle, reproachful glance at the three bear children. He decided to try persuading them during cleaning time—maybe coax them into going to the movie after all.

—

Outside the school gate, Jiangxia's fingertips danced across his phone screen.

He was replying to customer messages, scrolling through cat photos guests had sent for reference, and occasionally poking VIP clients with polite hellos to keep himself on their radar—so that when those big-name clients inevitably ran into a case, they'd think, Ah, time to call that reliable young detective.

Unseen to anyone, time passed imperceptibly.

One of Jiangxia's subordinates was about to go on a family trip, so he also took a few minutes to reshuffle the cat-finding territories on their shared map.

After sending everything out, Jiangxia looked up, suddenly sensing something.

Right on cue, a familiar car passed by.

It cruised five or six meters past, then smoothly reversed and stopped beside him. The window rolled down.

Amuro Tooru's face appeared.

He peered at Jiangxia, puzzled. "What are you doing standing here?"

As he spoke, he glanced toward the elementary school across the street. His gaze bounced back and forth between the building and Jiangxia, as if trying to form some kind of logical connection.

...Which was hard, considering the unlikely combination of this man and a school full of children.

Jiangxia, for his part, wasn't focused on Tooru's confusion. He was staring at the unmistakably dense killing aura curling off "Amuro Tooru" like smoke from dry ice.

For a second, Jiangxia looked more confused than the fake Amuro Tooru.

But then, as the car window opened and a breeze drifted through, he caught a faint, familiar scent—crisp, clean apples.

The ghosts hovering around Jiangxia had sensed it earlier. The mermaid stared blankly at the figure in the car, then at her own hands. She was holding a piece of killing aura she'd begged Jiangxia for—one that smelled exactly like the one now hanging around "Amuro Tooru."

That aura came from Vermouth.

It was her current favorite toy.

"…"

Jiangxia quietly sniffed the air again, noting the high-grade apple fragrance. His eyes narrowed as he studied the driver of the Mazda more carefully.

It was Vermouth. He was almost certain.

He had enough evidence to pounce and tear off the disguise right then and there.

But…

He paused.

Why be hasty?

She came to him willingly. Instead of burning the bridge, he could play along, pretend he hadn't noticed anything… and slowly siphon all the killing aura she had to offer. If he handled it right, she might even keep delivering it herself like a loyal courier.

Jiangxia looked at the person in the car and calmly answered the earlier question.

"I promised a neighbor I'd take a few kids to the movies today."

"Amuro Tooru" glanced at his watch, then at the quiet schoolyard. "It's already past dismissal."

"They're on cleaning duty," Jiangxia explained patiently. "They'll come out a bit late."

"I see…" "Amuro Tooru" nodded, seemingly satisfied. He didn't press further and drove away soon after.

Jiangxia watched the car go.

…That's it?

Just leaving?

He stared blankly for a second.

Then the sound of tires approached again.

The same car returned, pulled up beside him, and parked.

"Amuro Tooru," still radiating killing aura like a leaky reactor, leaned over and opened the passenger-side door, holding a large paper bag full of hot, crispy burritos.

"Come on in," he said casually. "They're probably still messing around while cleaning. Kids don't pay attention to time."

Jiangxia: "…"

Even if he couldn't see the killing aura, he was pretty sure he'd still realize this wasn't the real Amuro Tooru.

The real one wouldn't have this much free time. If Jiangxia remembered correctly, the actual Tooru should currently be buried under a mountain of deliveries.

But hey, the burritos smelled good.

This "Amuro Tooru" seemed to be trying his best to fit in like a regular person. Jiangxia bent down and got into the car without hesitation. He peeked into the paper bag.

Fresh. Warm. Softly steaming.

He picked out the most well-wrapped burrito and started peeling it open.

From the seat beside him, "Amuro Tooru" watched with a complex expression.

Vermouth—currently enjoying her identity theft moment—had expected some wariness. A bit of suspicion. Maybe a half-hearted lie about having already eaten.

Instead, she got Jiangxia, casually chowing down on her food with zero hesitation, like he'd ordered it himself.

She thought back to how she'd once told herself: Ouzo is wary of Organization cadres. He's not easy to fool.

Then she looked at said Ouzo, now half-reclining in her passenger seat, devouring a burrito like it was the best thing he'd eaten all week.

"…"

Taking advantage of the mask she wore, Vermouth added a sarcastic jab in a light tone:

"Aren't you afraid it's poisoned?"

Jiangxia paused mid-bite.

Then turned to look at her.

"…If it was poisoned, I'd have noticed the killing aura when you handed it to me."

He held up the half-eaten burrito, sniffed it again, and casually took another bite.

"And besides…" he said with a completely serious face, "if I die, at least it'll be with a full stomach."

Vermouth: "…"

This guy is either the most Buddhist hitman in history… or completely insane.

Either way, she was starting to understand why the Organization still hadn't figured him out.

—

*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 31 - 90 days by POWER STONES.

Progress: 17/60(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS

Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.

Progress:3/10*